OTTAWA—The Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l
(ALPA) issued the following statement in response to the Canadian Transportation
Agency’s (CTA’s) recent decision to approve Sunwing Airlines Inc.’s applications
for wet lease of foreign aircraft and pilots through spring 2014.

“ALPA has long
advocated for the establishment of a formal Canadian wet lease policy to help
level the playing field for all Canadian air carriers and to ensure that
Canadian pilots benefit from Canadian aviation job opportunities. So, when
Transport Minister Lisa Raitt announced the government’s first-ever policy
imposing limits on wet leasing in the aviation industry in August, ALPA welcomed
the new policy as an important step toward reaching that goal.

“The policy caps a
Canadian air carrier’s use of aircraft wet-leased from a foreign company at a
maximum of 20 percent of the number of Canadian-registered aircraft on its air
operator certificate (AOC) at the time the wet lease application is made. Yet,
the Canadian Transportation Agency chose not to follow the new policy when it
approved Sunwing’s applications to wet lease a total of five aircraft—a request
that far exceeds the 20 percent cap, given that there were 12 aircraft on the
company’s AOC at the time the applications were filed.

“ALPA is dismayed that
the agency did not heed the clear wording of the new policy in approving the
first application governed by it. Despite the CTA’s acknowledgment that
Sunwing’s request exceeded the 20 percent cap, the agency based its approval on
a commitment by Sunwing to have a total of 27 aircraft listed on its AOC during
the period the wet lease aircraft would be operated. It is shameful that the
agency made a determination based on a future promise when the policy clearly
states that decisions should be based on the present situation.

“ALPA calls on the CTA
to apply the policy as intended by its clear wording when considering future
requests. ALPA will continue to monitor the decisions of the CTA to ensure they
comply with the policy, and will continue to promote government policies and
practices that benefit Canadian pilots and provide them with job opportunities.”

Founded in 1931, ALPA is the world’s largest
pilot union, representing nearly 50,000 pilots at 32 airlines in the United
States and Canada, including the 2,800 Canadian flightcrew members who fly for
Air Transat, Bearskin, Calm Air, Canadian North, CanJet, First Air, Jazz
Aviation, Kelowna Flightcraft, and Wasaya. Visit the ALPA website at
www.alpa.org.